fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 One of my daughters is having serious problems with her cycle. Heavy bleeding, feeling sick 1-2 days a month, nausea, dizziness.... This has been ongoing for at least 3 cycles. What are our options? I'd prefer to avoid hormonal birth control. She has an extreme personality, and she actually has been doing really well with managing her moodiness related to hormones. I don't want to mess with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 I had this as a teen too. I think it is called abdominal migraines. All the Dr offered me was birth control...I refused. What helped? Drinking more water, getting exercise, eating less meat/dairy (I think this was due to the hormones in it), and taking an advil before the symptoms got started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 Sounds like she might have endometriosis. A mostly-vegan diet *drastically* reduced my cramping and nausea. Dairy seemed to be the main culprit, followed by red meat. See: http://www.pcrm.org/health/health-topics/using-foods-against-menstrual-pain 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 Does it make a difference that I know where the meat and dairy that is consumed comes from? My cow doesn't get hormones. Nor do our beef steers or pigs. Or is it just the meat and dairy itself? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnificent_baby Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 I would make an appt with an OB/GYN and have a pelvic ultrasound to rule out cysts, fibroids, etc. Dd just had one and it was non-invasive if you catch my drift. We did start a very low dose contraceptive because her doctor thinks the symptoms match endometriosis. Ultrasound was normal. Not crazy to go that route but am hoping this helps with extreme moodiness and abdominal pain that we can't figure out. Good luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 FWIW, my oldest takes Lo LoEstrin, which is (I think) the lowest dose HBC you can take, and she's been fine on it. The next step up was too much and gave her mood swings. It's the kind you REALLY have to take at exactly the same time every day if you want it to work as birth control, but for managing periods, it's worked just fine. A friend's daughter, who is 18 and who has the same kind of personality your oldest has (in fact, I used to think of her every time you posted about your oldest!), is doing fine on regular LoEstrin. Just in case you end up having to go that route... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 Sounds like she might have endometriosis. A mostly-vegan diet *drastically* reduced my cramping and nausea. Dairy seemed to be the main culprit, followed by red meat. See: http://www.pcrm.org/health/health-topics/using-foods-against-menstrual-pain Aha! Thanks for this. Very clear explainations of how it works 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 So my next question is this... Suppose we do a radical diet change. She's already slim. She does NOT need to loose weight. At all. Loosing any will put her in a TOO THIN zone. She's already in size 4 jeans. She needs fat to stay satisfied. She needs high protein to keep her blood sugar at good levels. And she's the type to skip meals if there;s not much appealing in the house, feel crappy, be angry and unhappy and be suddenly surprised when a snack makes her feel better. So a major diet change must be thought out very carefully! Is it possible to be high protein and vegan? Vegan with a decent amount of fat to avoid weight loss? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 I am actually allergic to all meats except fish now. Yes it is possible to be vegan/vegetarian and get protein and fats. Nuts and avocados are good fats. Beans (hummus!), seeds, greens, buckwheat can also give you protein as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 I am actually allergic to all meats except fish now. Yes it is possible to be vegan/vegetarian and get protein and fats. Nuts and avocados are good fats. Beans (hummus!), seeds, greens, buckwheat can also give you protein as well. I guess where I get hung up is the fact that our family is SO incredibly active. Like miles and miles walked per day. All the vegetarian/vegan people I know are more sedentary. And when I try to cut back on animal fats and proteins eating nuts and seeds for protein, I am hungry/hangry ALL THE TIME. So it's hard for me to picture it working for an active teen with a raging metabolism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 My friend had what you're describing and they finally (after years!) figured out it was endometriosis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 I've trained for a marathon with this diet. Yes miles and miles and miles. And yes I was very thin. It just means you have to eat and eat all the time. I do not have endometriosis. That was checked. Not saying it couldn't be that for your dd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 5, 2017 Author Share Posted October 5, 2017 I've trained for a marathon with this diet. Yes miles and miles and miles. And yes I was very thin. It just means you have to eat and eat all the time. I do not have endometriosis. That was checked. Not saying it couldn't be that for your dd. Ok thanks for that input. Like I said, I know many overweight older people who rave about the benefits of vegetarian/vegan but the whole time I'm thinking..."ok, but do you know how active we are?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted October 5, 2017 Share Posted October 5, 2017 No problem. I'm a little more like that now than I used to be. 4 kids and mental health issues in my family (not me) to deal with has kept me from working out as much as I'd like, so I am a little fluffier now. But I did do it as a skinny active person too, it works, you just have to be a little more thoughtful about it or you end up eating nothing but carbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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